Joseph C. Maroon, MD, FACS is clinical professor and vice chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery and Heindl Scholar in Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. In addition to being a renowned neurosurgeon, he is a sports medicine expert, health and nutrition expert and Ironman triathlete.

Dr. Maroon, the neurosurgeon

Dr. Maroon is regarded as a premiere specialist in the surgical treatment of injuries and diseases of the brain and spine, specializing in minimally invasive procedures. Consistently listed in America’s Best Doctors for the past 20 years, he has an international referral base, including numerous professional athletes and celebrities.

Dr. Maroon obtained his medical and neurosurgical training at Indiana University, Georgetown University, Oxford University in England and the University of Vermont. He conducted extensive research into neurotrauma, brain tumors and diseases of the spine, which has led to many innovative techniques for diagnosing and treating these disorders. His research efforts garnered him numerous awards from various national and international neurological societies.

Dr. Maroon is the author of six books, and (co-)author of 40 book chapters and over 270 published scientific papers. He has given more than 150 presentations at national and international conferences and is often invited as visiting professor and key-note speaker. He has served on the editorial boards of eight medical and neurological journals and is currently associate editor of Surgical Neurology, and editorial board member of Neurological Research and The Physician and Sports Medicine journals. He also is past-President of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, the largest society of Neurosurgeons in the world.

Dr. Maroon, the sports medicine expert

Dr. Maroon has been the team neurosurgeon for the Pittsburgh Steelers since 1981, and is Medical Director of the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). He has successfully performed surgery on numerous professional football players and other elite athletes with potentially career-ending neck and spine injuries. Notably, he safely returned most to their high level of athletic performance.

Dr. Maroon is highly invested in the prevention and treatment of concussions in high school, college and professional sports, specifically football. While working with the Steelers in the early 1990’s, the lack of an objective, reliable instrument to evaluate concussion symptoms became very apparent to Dr. Maroon. To fill this void, he and Dr. Mark Lovell developed ImPACT™ (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing), an easy-to-administer, 20 minute long test to assess presence and severity of concussion symptoms. ImPACT™ has become the world-wide standard tool to assess sports-related concussions, and has been used in over 4.5 million athletes. In 1994, Dr. Maroon joined the National Football League’s mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee as concussion expert. This committee, which in 2007 was renamed National Football League’s Head, Neck and Spine Committee, is still in place.

For his expertise on sports medicine and concussions, Dr. Maroon is frequently interviewed and quoted by the media, including the New York Times, USA Today, Associated Press, ESPN, Sports Illustrated, and ABC News Nightline.

Dr. Maroon, the health and nutrition expert

Dr. Joseph Maroon has a major interest in regenerative medicine and is senior Vice-President of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine. Furthermore, he is on the Board of Directors of Mylan Laboratories, the 3rd largest Generic drug company in the world and is Chairman of their Science and Technology Committee. Dr. Maroon is also Chairman of the Medical advisory board of General Nutrition Centers (GNC).

Dr. Maroon developed research interests in the use of omega-3 fatty acids as a safe and natural alternative to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in treating neck and low-back pain in patients with disc and arthritic causes. He wrote the book, Fish Oil: The Natural Anti-Inflammatory, which highlights many of the benefits of fish oil, not just for back-pain, but also for general good health.

Through his intensive athletic involvement, Dr. Maroon has a personal interest in healthy living and healthy nutrition. He is much invested in keeping his expertise up to date as he “practices what he preaches”.

Dr. Maroon, the athlete

Dr. Maroon received an athletic scholarship to Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana where as an undergraduate, he was named a Scholastic All-American in football. Dr. Maroon has successfully maintained his personal athletic interests through participation in 9 marathons and more than 72 Olympic-distance triathlon events. However, his greatest athletic accomplishment is his participation in 8 Ironman triathlons (Hawaii – 1993, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2013; Canada – 1995; New Zealand – 1997; Germany – 2000), where he usually finishes in the top 10 of his age group. Recently, in July 2012 and 2013, he finished second and third, respectively, in his age group in the Muncie, Indiana half Ironman triathlon. In October 2013 he completed his 5th World Championship Ironman in Kona, Hawaii.

As a result of his athletic dedication and performance, Dr. Maroon (along with NFL’s great Joe Montana and NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) was inducted into the Lou Holtz Upper Ohio Valley Hall of Fame for his athletic accomplishments and contributions to sports medicine on June 27, 1999. Eleven years later, on March 14, 2010 he was inducted into the National Fitness Hall of Fame in Chicago. Other inductees include Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger; Jack LaLanne; and Kenneth Cooper, founder of the Aerobic Movement.

For all his accomplishments, Dr. Maroon was in 2011 selected as a “Distinguished Alumnus” of Indiana University—one of 5 selected annually from 500,000 alumni from the university.

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Maroon, please give us a call at 1-888-234-4357

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Hospitalization and Insurance:

If you are hospitalized, our office will arrange for your admission. We admit patients to the hospitals of UPMC Health System, including UPMC Presbyterian and UPMC Passavant. We accept most health insurance plans, including those outside the UPMC Health System. Below you find the most current list of plans we accept, but this information can change. Please call our office at1-888-234-4357 to see if your health plan is included, even if it is not listed below:

Please note that if you have Highmark Insurance or an insurance product provided by Highmark you still may be covered to be evaluated by Dr. Maroon. Learn all the details for continuation of care at – Click HERE

Spinal Cord Tumors

What is it?

Spinal cord tumors can occur in any part of the spinal column and can cause significant neurological and functional impairment. Luckily, they are comparatively rare. Improved early testing with diagnostic tools such as MRI and CT scans made it possible to diagnose spinal cord tumors earlier, and earlier discovery directly translates to quicker intervention, typically with surgery. A quicker intervention can help to minimize their potentially devastating effects. Microsurgical techniques and other specialized treatments are used to remove these tumors.

What are the Types of Tumors?

Spinal tumors can be malignant (cancerous) or benign. Both types can occur within the various layers of the spinal cord:

Extradural– Those tumors outside the dural covering of the spinal cord.

Intradural extramedullary – Those tumors inside the dural covering but not within the spinal cord itself.

Intradural intramedullary – Those tumors inside the dural covering and within the spinal cord itself.

Prevalence and facts about spinal cord tumors:

Spinal tumors occur in approximately 1.1 out of 100,000 persons.

Approximately 15-20% of all central nervous system (CNS) tumors occur in the spine.

They can occur in both the pediatric and adult population.

They are found most frequently in the thoracic cord (middle of the back), but can also occur in the cervical spine or the lumbar spine.

The tumor can arise from any component of the spinal cord.

90% of spinal tumors are benign and therefore a surgical “cure” is possible.

Many are slow growing and take years to cause problems.

These spinal tumors can be difficult to diagnose and are occasionally missed in their early stages because of their tendency to mimic other conditions (e.g. back pain from strains or other traumatic injuries).

What are their Symptoms and Signs?

Pain is the usual presentation and this is classically thought to be worse when the patient is supine or laying down flat. Pain usually radiates to other parts of the body (arm or leg) because these nerves and nerve roots in the cord are being pressed on by the tumor mass. Eventually, weakness and abnormal sensations will follow as the tumor advances and finally the bladder and bowel will begin to lose normal function. During this time, walking will become difficult and paralysis may then rapidly occur.

What are the Treatments?

If surgery is indicated the goal will be to safely remove as much tumor as possible while preserving the neurological function that is present prior to surgery. Even with a successful outcome there is still a possibility of re-occurrence; therefore, these patients will usually require lifelong monitoring with MRIs. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy are usually of little help with tumors of the spine but some treatment protocols are offered for specific cases.

What are some of the Surgical Risks?

The possible risks from spinal cord tumor surgery will be reviewed with you and your family prior to surgery. Spinal tumor surgery is a very serious and potentially consequential surgery, and both risks and benefits must be well considered. Spinal fluid leaks, due to the fact that the dural or outer sac around the spinal cord may open up again after surgery, are somewhat common and can be treated with either prolong bed rest or a spinal fluid drain. In rare cases, paralysis and/or loss of bladder, bowel or sexual function can occur. Recovery after this type surgery may include aggressive physical therapy in order to regain lost function due to the tumor compression. Cord swelling after surgery is not unusual, which can temporarily cause symptoms to get worse immediately following surgery. Often, medications such as steroids are used to decrease nerve tissue swelling and help to decompress the nerve.